ISDT PC-4860 Safe Parallel Charging Adapter

This is a review of the latest ISDT product PC-4860 safe parallel adapter.
The adapter for this unbiased review was provided by Banggood: goo.gl/mNskRD
For a written review and a discussion please visit rcgroups: www.rcgroups.com/forums/showth...

[@lakufoekdm4237]

Thanks, excellent show and more videos regarding " isdt " products...well done!

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Cheers. Glad you've enjoyed the review.

[@terryesteban8954]

I know it's kind of off topic but do anyone know of a good website to stream new tv shows online ?

[@borjang]

Nice review !

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Thanks. I'm glad you liked it.

[@NorthStarDrones]

Thank you. Just wondering what does the Max balance current being 2 amps,. Is that just the max current when balancing? can I still charge normally like with four batteries say it 6 amps??

[@rcpimp6419]

Great review! subscribed :)

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

iSDT has introduced 2 new products recently: 1. A middle weight (300W) charger - iSDT Q6 Plus 300W 14A MINI Pocket Balance Charger: www.rcgroups.com/forums/showpost.php?p=36298745&postcount=488It's available to pre-order from Banggood: goo.gl/Asq147 And 2. Power Supply Unit - iSDT CP-16027 160W 27V Active PFC Power Supply. Also available from Banggood: goo.gl/djoFhi

[@shotbyarian]

have you seen/tried the "STRIX Ultimate Joshua Bardwell Parallel Charging Board 2-6S"?

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Hey! Yes I'm familiar with the board. Never used it though so can't comment. From what I remember the initial version of his boards were not the best but they have been improved and the latest version is very good. I'm sure there are plenty of reviews out there.

[@oxdudepoege]

What is the name of the third balance board in the video. I unterstood revo electric npa but I can't find this board anywhere under this name.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

It's called Revoelectrix MPA. However I've just checked the revoelectrix website and it looks like they might have discontinued the 6 cell adapter and replaced it with a 4-cell adapters: www.store.revolectrix.com/Products/MPA Unless it's just temporarily unavailable.

[@cddamiao]

Do you know if this plate it's only to charge proposes or if i can put it inside my scooter to ride with it always pluged on the controlled to ride? Thanks 😁

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Hmm.... I am not sure I understand what would be a purpose of that if I am being honest :-) Why would you use a parallel adapter like that on your scooter?

[@scatfpv]

What will happened if one of the battery pack balance wire has damaged or loose connection that you didn't realized while charging multiple lipo battery pack? Could you discuss the meaning of "Safe Parallel Adapter" that was printed on the board? TIA!

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

It has never happened to me so can't really comment. Maybe other users can chip in. Hopefully it would trip one of the fuses or stop the charging altogether on the charger due to battery cell number mismatch. The reason they call it a safe adapter is due to the inclusion of additional fuses on the board (rather than a single, main one on cheaper boards). If you watch the video there is a quick comparison between 3 different adapters each offering different approach to the safety at different price point. Ultimately in case of parallel charging is the user knowledge and experience that makes the biggest difference when it comes to safety in my opinion. Having said so I always welcome additional features that this board provides.

[@adronepilotcom7278]

so you dont need to charge batteries with the same voltage with this device?

[@FAQUERETERMAX]

Yes you do, it's one of the principles of parallel charging

[@mauritz1774]

My enlish is bad can i charge Batterys with NOT Same Voltage and different mAh?

[@alex-w8p2e]

@@mauritz1774 no

[@Ozzy3333333]

The 10 port JB parallel version2 is only $27, has 10 ports, and has the resettable polyswitches and individual fuses on each main line. Summery, 10 port vs 4 port, and more protection for less cash = no brainer. I forgot, it also has a built in voltmeter. www.readymaderc.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&first_name=&commit=Search&q=jb

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Hey! Thanks for watching and keeping the video alive. Unfortunately the JB boards you mentioned were not quite available 3 years ago when I reviewed the PC-4860. :-) Plus, ISDT products have never been cheap, really. These aside I believe they are slightly different products. The JB adapter is a dedicated 4s board whereas ISDT can be used to parallel charge any multicell battery (2s - 8s) so even though you can charge significantly less batteries at the same time you get slightly more versatile product. Also, ISDT uses resettable polyfuses as well. As for the voltmeter I believe this is a bit of gimmick feature as you get voltage readings on the charger anyway. Totally agree that JB adapter is a great product (not the version1 though) but it all depends what a potential user is after. If I was after a dedicated 4s board I would pick the JB V2 as well.

[@Ozzy3333333]

@@czajuniapawulonik3148 Well said!

[@Ozzy3333333]

@@czajuniapawulonik3148 The JB has 3s, 4s, 5s, 6s products.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

@@Ozzy3333333 Oh yes, I am aware of that. Thanks for pointing this out. I only mentioned 4s as an example. However, that potentially means buying several products which might not be ideal for some ppl. Which also makes it less of a bargain unfortunately. Again, it all depends what works better for a user.

[@Ozzy3333333]

@@czajuniapawulonik3148 If you buy the 6s version and simply snip the balance connector plastic(the side with the locking tabs), then it becomes 1 to 6s board with more protection and thermal tape indicator on the polyswitches indicating a issue, the isdt does not have, or the voltmeter or the 10 ports or the lower cost. :}

[@smailmilak]

May I use this one with a non ISDT charger, for example Voltcraft 50?

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

You can use it with any charger. No problem. Just make sure you are familiar with LiPo parallel charging in general.

[@smailmilak]

@@czajuniapawulonik3148 Thanks. I will watch the one video from Joshua about that.

[@soulflowfilms]

Does this hub work with the ISDT Q8 model? I'll charge 4 batteries 6s 1500mah HV.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

I can't see any reason why it wouldn't work with the ISDT Q8. It works with any charger. Of course a charger power output will be a determining factor of the charging speed but any charger will work with the adapter. Essentially the charger will see your 4 batteries connected in parallel as a one bigger battery. Hope that makes sense. Of course if you want to charge 6s batteries your charger has to support 6s charging, which Q8 does of course.

[@soulflowfilms]

@@czajuniapawulonik3148 Thanks for your reply, helps a lot :)

[@Shadowcruise99]

Interesting product, but it appears that the fuses are not user replaceable. They appear to be SMT fuses.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

They are resettable (self-resetting) fuses so there shouldn't be a need to replace them manually. www.littelfuse.com/products/resettable-ptcs.aspx

[@Shadowcruise99]

That interesting, thanks for the information!

[@Trail0001]

No they just burn up in smoke.. mine did.. only way for me to fix was to scrape away the black fuse residu and to bridge the spot, or i would have had to throw it away.. expensive product to just throw away.. the self resetting fuse on the ISDT parallel board is a myth..

[@arekkazmierowski9657]

So you're saying you should connect balance cables first?

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

I'm not sure if this matters here since you should be connecting batteries before charging starts.

[@arekkazmierowski9657]

Well it does matter, as the batteries will equalize voltage over balance ports if you do it like this. This is strictly forbidden in all parallel charging guides I have read, because the current could be too high for these thin cables. However with ISDT having these fuses and 2A limit there it might be a different story and I'm not sure how should it be connected.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Yeah, but assuming you plug them without much delay it won't make a difference. The batteries should be discharged to the similar level anyway so there won't be any voltage drops or anything. I'm fairly certain I plugged the batteries either way and had no problems. But I can double check that for you if you are still concerned.

[@arekkazmierowski9657]

What do you mean withh "delay"?

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Sorry for not being clearer. What I meant was that you plug them all at the same time essentially, before starting to charge them. I can be mistaken, but as I mentioned already, I don't think that matters anyway due to the way the parallel charging works and the way the parallel chargers are wired inside. I have just tried connecting my batteries both ways and didn't see any abnormalities. Out of curiosity, why do you think it actually makes a difference whether you plug the balance lead first or the other way round?

[@rumburak7383]

pytanie dlaczego nie po polsku miałbyś chyba wiecej wyswietleń. a drugie pytanie jezeli sa dwie baterie po 3cele czyli razem 6 cel to jak widzisz napiecia poszczegolnych cel. na video widac tylko pomiar z 3 cel...

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Artur G - Nie zastanowialem się nad tym w sumie. Wydaje mi sie ze ogólnie jest większy odsetek osób mówiących po angielsku które mogą być zainteresowane. Ale generalnie nie o to chodzi. Ponieważ i tak muszę nagrać wersję angielską żeby było po polsku musiałbym to robić dwa razy a niespecjalnie mi się chce. Jezeli podłączysz dwie baterie 3 celowe (albo wieloktornosc) to ładując je równolegle dalej masz baterie 3 celowa tylko większą. Ładowarka widzi tak podłączone baterie jak 3 celowa właśnie. Nie ma możliwości wyświetlenia napięcia poszczególnych cel w indywidualnych bateriach. Ale ładując równolegle to napięcie które pokazuje ładowarka (wspólne) powinno być takie samo jak indywidualne. Zwłaszcza na koniec ładowania. Na początku może być różnie szczególnie jezeli baterie byly rozładowane do różnych poziomów. Jeżeli z jakiegoś powodu chcesz dokładnie widzieć jakie są napięcia poszczególnych cel to musisz ładować baterie indywidualnie a nie równolegle.

[@rumburak7383]

czajunia pawulonik czyli nie jest to najlepsze rozwiazanie bo niemam kontroli nad poszczegolnymi ogniwami a przecież to tego służy balanser. Co do filmiku w innym jezyku to sugeruje napisy. Pozdrawiam!

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Rownolegle ladowanie baterii LiPo ma to do siebie ze one sie ladnie wewnetrznie balansuja. Prawda ze nie masz kontroli nad poszczegolnymi ogniwami ale generalnie efekt koncowy jest taki ze baterie ladowane rownolegle maja odpowiednie napiecie koncowe. Ten sposob ladowania baterii LiPo jest bardzo powszechny poniewaz to po prostu dziala. Poza tym jezeli okaze sie ze jakas bateria nie jest dobrze zbalansowana zawsze mozesz to zrobic indywidualnie. Zeby sie do tego przekonac najlepiej sprobuj naladowac kilka baterii w ten sposob i zobacz co sie stanie :) Oczywiscie pamietaj ze baterie powinny byc rozladowane do podobnego poziomu.

[@Olitoni]

Artur G Nie wydaje mi sie że polacy by szukali takich filmów... za mało nas jest w tym hobby

[@rumburak7383]

Olitoni FPV można dodać napisy :)

[@RixFPV]

OK so you charge at a much higher rate than I do. Like I almost never go over 1 amp. So those 850's I would charge at .9. The most I have gone is 2x but never would think to go 6! I guess that explains why I thought my charges are taking forever.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

I normally charge at 1C only (x1 if you prefer to use that term). Well, unless I'm in a rush. I might go to anywhere between 2C-3C then (x2-x3). In the video I was just trying to quickly show the charging process using higher current. Also, you need to remember that when you charge batteries in parallel their capacity from the charger point of view is the sum of all connected batteries. It just sees those multiple batteries as a single larger one. So charging 2 x 0.85Ah batteries in parallel with 0.9A would mean that you effectively charge them at around 0.5C (x0.5). In the same manner I wasn't charging my batteries at 6C (x6). It was more like 3.5C(x3.5) or so. Hope that makes sense. Also, please remember this is not a tutorial about lipo parallel charging. It's merely an overview of a parallel charging adapter.

[@RixFPV]

@@czajuniapawulonik3148 OK thanks. So I can be charging 4 1300mah at 5.2 and I would be going at 1amp, which is the normal rating. I was charging them way to slow being paranoid.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

@@RixFPV Yes, that's correct. If you charge 4 x 1.3Ah batteries in parallel at 5.2A you will be charging them at 1C (or as you call it x1 speed). Essentially, for your charger it looks as if you were charging one 5.2Ah battery. So if you were charging your 4 batteries at 1.3A you were charging them at 0.25C. It must have taken over 4 hours to charge them like that. I must say you have a lot of patience :-)

[@RixFPV]

@@czajuniapawulonik3148 Perfect, thank you very much for the clarification.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

@@RixFPV No problem. Glad I've managed to help a bit. 👍

[@myszakiszkapl7985]

Czy można ładować pakiety lipo o różnych pojemnościach

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Tak mozna. Trzeba tylko pamietac zeby liczba cel (napiecie) w ladowanych bateriach byla taka sama.

[@myszakiszkapl7985]

Super dziękuję chodziło mi o to że mam 3 pakiety li po 11 V ale każdy ma inną pojemność i czyli mogę ładować jednocześnie te pakiety

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

Tak, mozna. Osobiscie rowniez laduje w ten sposob i nie ma problemu. Nalezy ozcywiscie pamietac zeby pakiety byly rozladowane do podobnego poziomu. Ale to dotyczy ladowania rownoleglego ogolnie a nie tylko w przypadku bateri o roznych pojemnosciach.

[@Strandbuggyschaukler]

You are charging a 850mAh battery with 6A w/o individual balancing each cell??!! Hope you have a good insurance *face palm*.

[@czajuniapawulonik3148]

No, I'm not. It would be nice if you could at least watch a video / read the comments before posting. Plus, as I said, I normally don't charge batteries at such speed anyway. It was just to make the video quicker and I was literally a few inches away during the process. But hey, thanks for your input.